Congratulations to Natalie Valdez, SWS, for passing the Spanish Wine Scholar with highest honors!
About Natalie:
I am a Pilates instructor by trade and a serious wine enthusiast. The world of wine amazes me; the more I learn the less I realize I know. Every day I learn something new and continue to uncover so much knowledge in this subject. My favorite regions used to be Oregon and New Zealand, but after taking WSG’s courses, I have a new love for old world wines.
I passed WSET’s courses, completing level 3 in August 2018. I also passed the Consejo Regulador DOCa Rioja’s Master of Rioja exam that same year. Earlier this year, I completed WSG’s FWS with Highest Honors and went right on to SWS. SWS added so much depth to my small knowledge base of Spanish wines. I absolutely love the attention to details that SWS brought about; the course gave me such a large working pool of information that I didn’t want to simply memorize, but understand at a great depth.
I just completed Italian Wine Scholar’s Northern Italy Unit 1 course with highest honors and am currently enrolled in IWS’s Central/Southern Italy Unit 2 course. My goal is to complete the trifecta before the end of 2020 and not have this year be completely cancelled due to Covid :). Later this year I am hoping to take CMS’s introductory course and next year I plan on enrolling in WSET’s Level 4 diploma course. In addition to these courses, I love taking classes at Florida Wine Academy whether its a Bordeaux Masterclass, Sake course, and of course all they offer during Miami Champagne Week every October.
The SWS program has already been helpful in my IWS studies. For example, the format is familiar and I hope to attain similar results. The text, coursework, online learning modules, and outline of learning objectives really set students up for success. Also, it is a great base for when I begin WSET’s Diploma next year.
